Jim CatanzaroPREVIOUS COVERAGE• Some call him visionary, others say it's time for him to go• Travel expenses add up for Jim Catanzaro
CATANZARO'S EMAIL TO FACULTY
To the Campus Family:I have been hearing the concerns of faculty as they have been expressed in emails, phone calls, and in the department and division meetings I've attended over the past several weeks. Based on these sincere expressions, I am implementing the following initiatives to create a more equitable power structure that I truly hope will answer concerns and clear up any previous misunderstandings that, it is clear, have caused resentment and hurt feelings.It is also my hope that this new structure will produce a renewed culture of open communication that will erase any fear of retribution at any level.Here are the initiatives:• 1. A 15-member committee will be established that will represent the various campus constituencies. The committee will regularly meet with me and college leaders and therefore have a voice in decisions that affect the campus community.• 2. A system will be established that will provide opportunity for suggestions, ideas, and concerns to be submitted with total anonymity. These items will be reviewed and responded to in a timely fashion. I am open to ideas as to how best to construct and implement such a system.• 3. A salary compensation study is underway through The Centre Group of Memphis to address inequities in the compensation of all regular employees.• 4. It has become apparent that we must do more in support of our adjunct faculty. A committee will be formed straightaway to address inequities and work toward desired solutions. There will be adjunct faculty representation on the committee.• 5. I will institute a more open door policy to allow time each week to meet with college divisions, departments, groups, and individuals.• 6. A regular campus-wide newsletter will be instituted to keep you more informed from top to bottom, because we all know that an informed campus is a successful campus.• 7. While you all understand that I have a large external role, our commitment is to develop more internal focus in my office so that I may be more visible and accessible on campus. If you have suggestions for additional ways to achieve greater transparency in campus decision making and higher levels of participation by faculty and staff, please feel free to let me know. I am immensely proud to be President of Chattanooga State. I believe and have stated publicly on scores of occasions that we have outstanding faculty, staff, and students. Perhaps I have not let each of you know sufficiently the important role you play in having our college be recognized as one of the "best of the best" among community colleges nationally. With these initiatives, I hope that we can put the issues that divide our campus to rest so we may continue to provide outstanding academic and training opportunities for our students and for our community. I look forward to working with each of you toward our continued success.
As faculty prepared Monday to put his reputation to the test, Chattanooga State President Jim Catanzaro offered a final olive branch.
In an email to faculty and staff, Catanzaro pledged to create a more "equitable power structure" by creating several committees, instituting a campus-wide newsletter and setting aside time each week for meetings with departments, groups or individuals. He also said an outside company is completing a compensation study and a new committee will evaluate inequities in adjunct pay.
"With these initiatives, I hope that we can put the issues that divide our campus to rest so we may continue to provide outstanding academic and training opportunities for our students and for our community," he wrote.
In another email Monday, he sent out the college's organizational chart and promised to make college governance "more horizontal so that all voices will be heard."
It was his latest attempt to win back faculty members, many of whom have already voiced a lack of support for his leadership. Beginning today, all faculty will have a chance to vote in a referendum on the issue. The vote comes amid an investigation by the Tennessee Board of Regents, which oversees all community colleges. The agency is looking into the hiring of the college's chief innovations officer, as well as the administration's ethics and campus morale.
Meanwhile, faculty on Monday met with Warren Nichols, TBR's vice chancellor for community colleges, who assured faculty they wouldn't be subject to retaliation from the administration for participating in today's vote.
"What I expressed to them today was while we are not trying to encourage them to take any particular action, if they choose to take a vote of any type, that is a protected First Amendment right," Nichols said.
All full-time faculty members will have the opportunity to vote today and tomorrow and absentee ballots will be collected for instructors at the college's remote locations.
TBR takes a vote of no confidence seriously, Nichols said, but its passage wouldn't necessarily mean the president would lose his job.
"We will certainly consider [the vote], but it is only one component of the overall picture that we're evaluating," he said. "It's an important piece, but it's certainly not the only piece."
Another big piece is TBR's audit of Catanzaro, which is expected to wrap up by the end of the month.
"Just like everyone else, we're waiting to see the results," Nichols said.
While visiting Chattanooga last week, Gov. Bill Haslam told reporters he was aware of the situation brewing on Chattanooga State's campus. But he said he wasn't ready to get involved. For now, that's up to TBR Chancellor John Morgan and his staff.
"That's their responsibility to follow through and look at the issues that have been brought up," he said. "Obviously to us our entire community college system is really important. Chattanooga State has played a critical role ... it's a critical part of our network."
The governor is chairman of TBR's board and appoints 12 of the board's 18 members.
"Obviously at some point in time if they have a recommendation to bring to the board, then I would be involved," he said.
Contact staff writer Kevin Hardy at khardy@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6249.
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